Data
Behind the
Indices
Understanding the methodologies, data sources, and significance of each democracy and freedom index we track.
The
Economist
Index
What It Measures
The Democracy Index is a comprehensive measure that evaluates the state of democracy in nations and territories across the globe based on five key categories:
- •Electoral Process and PluralismFree and fair elections, electoral laws and procedures
- •Functioning of GovernmentGovernment effectiveness, policy implementation, political stability
- •Political ParticipationVoter turnout, political engagement, women in government
- •Political CultureDemocratic traditions, acceptance of democratic norms
- •Civil LibertiesFreedom of expression, assembly, religion, and the press
Scoring System
Countries are scored from 0-10 and classified into four categories:
Countries with strong democratic institutions and high levels of political participation
Countries with free elections but weaknesses in governance or civil liberties
Countries with substantial irregularities preventing free elections
Countries where political pluralism is absent or heavily curtailed
Freedom
House
Index
Core Methodology
Freedom House evaluates freedom based on two fundamental dimensions:
Electoral process, political pluralism, functioning of government
Freedom of expression, associational rights, rule of law, individual rights
Classification System
Countries are classified based on their combined scores:
- •Free(1.0-2.5)Countries with broad range of political rights and civil liberties
- •Partly Free(3.0-5.0)Countries with limited political rights and civil liberties
- •Not Free(5.5-7.0)Countries with few or no political rights and civil liberties
Transparency Metrics
Transparency International
The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) scores countries on a scale of 0-100 based on perceived levels of public sector corruption. Higher scores indicate cleaner governance and lower corruption.
World Bank Governance
The Worldwide Governance Indicators measure six dimensions of governance: voice and accountability, political stability, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law, and control of corruption.